


An Unclean Spirit

by PrettyMessedUpSituation (MarcelinesNightosphere)



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Canon Era, Dark Magic, Demons, Gen, Halloween, Halloween Challenge, Teenagers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-30
Updated: 2015-10-30
Packaged: 2018-04-28 21:37:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,336
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5106623
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MarcelinesNightosphere/pseuds/PrettyMessedUpSituation
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The boys get a heads up about some suspicious activity going on in Wildwood, Missouri. After bringing in Jody and Donna to help on the case, they and Cas find out that what looked like a bunch of teenagers planning a simple Halloween party was much more ominous.</p>
            </blockquote>





	An Unclean Spirit

**Author's Note:**

> For the SPN Writing Challenge: October 2015  
> Prompt: Halloween Party  
> [Link to tumblr post](http://prettymessedupsituation.tumblr.com/post/132196652033/an-unclean-spirit)  
> *Photo in-story originally taken by the late Tom Halstead on Lawler Ford Road, edited by me.

“Guys no, I don’t want to do this.”

Michael groaned. “Amber, come on, don’t be such a wuss.”

“I brought flashlights,” Emily said. “We have our cell phones.” Amber didn’t look as if any of that consoled her.

Nicole gave Amber a reassuring smile and squeezed her arm. “We’re going to be fine. Two hours tops, and most of that is just walking. If you get too freaked out, we’ll leave. I’ll walk back with you.”

Amber looked at the gates blocking off the road and the sign that said there was absolutely no trespassing after the park was closed thirty minutes after dusk - up to a $1000 fine for anyone caught on the road after then. She sighed and turned her gaze back to her friends.

“Listen, I’m going on the record and saying that this was not my idea, and I would much rather be sitting in a booth at Steak n’ Shake right now, eating cheese fries and watching Tyler try - and fail - to knot cherry stems with his tongue.”

Tyler laughed. “Sure, stamped and notarized. _Amber was dragged into the woods against her will._ ” He looked at the sun making its way toward the horizon. 

Andrew’s eyes met Tyler’s. He shook off a shiver and zipped up his hoodie, nodding to the others. “Come on, we need to get more than a mile in before the sun goes down.”

The six friends stepped over the gate and started down the path to the road. Around them the trees were full although some were already fading to fall colors. Dense green ferns seemed to fill the space along the ground. It felt less claustrophobic than it was a few years ago before the road had become a park and trail. Still, the vegetation crept closer to the edge of the road, waiting to reclaim the path at its first chance.

A mile into the trail the sun must have set. Through the trees and their leaves there was no way for the group to tell how long it had been since dusk, but something changed in the air. Tyler’s hands were shoved deep into his pockets as they walked. Andrew followed behind Tyler and Emily, while Nicole and Amber trailed just steps behind. Michael brought up the rear with the periodic trip over a root that was too close to the path. Amber gripped Nicole’s hand, intertwining their fingers and squeezing tight.

“Are you okay?” Nicole whispered. “Do we need to go back?”

Amber looked up at the canopy of trees blocking out the world around them. “No, I’m fine.”

The early fall air was crisp yet felt thicker the further they walked. They slowed as they reached an offshoot of the path that led to an old stone house at the end of the road. Amber and Nicole waited behind for Michael as he bent down to dislodge a rock from his shoe, and Andrew jogged back to them with the bag of supplies. Tyler argued with Emily over something no one else could hear.

The darkness began to close around them. Michael and Andrew fiddled with the flashlights, replacing a battery on one that was low. They passed one of the lights to Nicole and Amber.

“Is there supposed to be a house back here?” Michael asked.

“Yeah,” Tyler said. Ducking down, he pointed through the trees. “There’s a stone house over there. Emily wants us to have a Halloween party there.”

“Are you fucking nuts?” Nicole asked. “You can’t be serious.”

“Why not?” Andrew said. “It’ll be awesome. It’s already creepy as fuck, we just have to figure out how to get the keg there. At least we have a month to figure out how.”

“Shouldn’t we head back now?” Amber asked. She looked around. They’d passed the bridge with the railroad tracks. The house was off to their left. The drop to the river was ahead and the high banks of the other side faced west and rose up to a bluff dotted with oaks. The moonlight filtered through the trees, but illuminated the ridge. Amber rubbed her eyes, as if she was seeing something. Among the oaks, dark figures stood, staring down at the group. “Guys, who is that?”

“Who is what?”

Amber pointed, her voice starting to shake. “Them.”

Everyone looked toward the hill and everything grew silent. Not just their group - there was no noise, not a cricket or bird, nothing. No one moved. Amber’s group was still; the group on the hill was still. Amber strained her eyes to try to make out a face or something to identify them, but she saw nothing, nothing but shadow. She lifted her phone with the camera ready and took a photo of the group along the ridge. Suddenly, one moved. It darted away from the rest and was moving lightning fast in their direction.

“What was that?”

“Let’s go. Slowly turn and walk,” Tyler said with an eerie calm.

Everyone turned and started walking quickly back the way they had come. Amber looked over her shoulder to see if the other shadows were still there. Nicole and Andrew’s eyes followed hers, relieved that no other shadows had moved. But then they did. All of them at once.

Nicole tugged Amber’s hand forcefully, pulling her around to where she was staring straight at the bank with the shadows. They were gone.

“Amber….”

Amber’s voice shook. “ _Run_.”

The path, however well done with the park department keeping it clear, was still fighting back the woods. Roots tripped them up and branches lashed across their faces as they reached the bridge. Following the beam of Andrew’s light, they stepped quickly along the rail line, careful to not trip or fall over the edge. As soon as their feet hit the hard-packed dirt of the road they took off running again. Nicole started crying and pressed her hands to her ears.

“What’s going on?” Amber asked her.

“Do you not hear them?” she shouted.

Amber hadn’t taken much pause to do anything but make one foot go in front of the other. As they ran, she listened. Sure enough, the dead silence that had fallen upon them when they saw the dark figures had lifted, but now it was like they were running alongside them in the woodline, cutting through the trees, laughing. The laughter was like that of children, horrific as they drew closer and louder.

Far behind them, Michael screamed.

“Where are they?” Andrew asked, throwing the beam of his flashlight on the path behind them.

“We have to go back,” Amber said, taking a smaller flashlight. “You go with Nicole and wait for us by the gate.” Nicole and Andrew looked at each other and at Amber. Something cracked in the woodline. “Go!”

They took off toward the opening of the road ahead and Amber turned the way they had come, following it back toward the bridge. She slowed when she saw Michael bent over the side, retching. “Michael?”

Tyler stood at the end of the bridge, unmoving. Michael began crawling toward Amber, shaking. Amber pulled him to his feet and she lifted the flashlight to Tyler’s face. He stared blankly at them. The silence encompassed them again, instant and oppressive. Amber froze. She swore she felt eyes on her in all directions. She grasped at her necklace, whispering something repeatedly. Suddenly black smoke burst out of Tyler, thundering toward the end of the bridge, dissipating into a mist as it reached Amber and Michael. Tyler began wheezing and nearly buckled. Michael and Amber called to him, reaching out their arms and waving him toward them.

“Where’s Emily?” Tyler asked.

“She’s gone. Just run!” Michael said, his voice quavering.

“What do you mean she’s gone?” Tyler screamed. “Where is she?”

The rustling in the woods began again. Amber grabbed Tyler’s hand and pulled him behind her as she started to sprint up the road, the sound of voices whispering and laughing just feet away from them in the trees. Nicole and Andrew were across the street from the gate, shifting their feet and staring, waiting for their friends to pop out of the woods. Amber saw Nicole’s hands shaking as she tried to type something into her phone, but she stopped and ran over to them as soon as they emerged.

“Are you guys okay? What the fuck was that? What the fuck happened?” she asked, frantic.

“Where’s Emily?” Andrew asked.

Amber and Tyler turned to Michael, who was pale and breathing heavily, looking as if he might throw up again.

“She fell.”

Everyone waited for more explanation.

“What do you mean she fell?” Nicole asked.

“They were coming,” Michael said. “She twisted her ankle on the track and fell.”

“We have to go get her! You left her alone?” Andrew shouted. He snatched the light away from Michael and headed toward the gate.

“Andrew, no, she’s gone.”

Andrew stopped, but didn’t turn around. “What do you mean she’s gone?”

“She backed up and fell over the edge. I saw...I saw her body. We gotta call 911.”

The four erupted into gasps of disbelief. 

“Where was Tyler?” Nicole finally asked, an accusing tone in her voice.

Michael shuddered, his voice raspy. “It was...it was  _in_ him.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

Dean’s coffee was still steaming. He blew across the top of the small opening in the lid and took a sip. His face twisted.

“Why is  _everything_  pumpkin spice? Everything.”

“You like it,” Sam said, sliding into the passenger seat.

“Well of course I like it. It tastes like pie. That doesn’t mean that everything has to taste like pumpkin just because it’s October.”

A smirk wormed its way onto Sam’s face. “Just think, soon it’ll be peppermint.”

“I hate holidays. How do holidays have flavors?”

“Hey listen, I got a message from Garth about something we should check out.”

Dean raised an eyebrow. “When did Garth message you?”

“On...facebook.” Sam’s face pinched, bracing himself for the relentless teasing that information would cause him.

“You’re shitting me right? You have a  _facebook_?”

Sam glared at Dean. “Impala67.”

“Touché.” He sipped his coffee. “Okay, what did your facebook friend Garth have to say?”

“He found this event on Halloween in Wildwood, Missouri. There’s this road that is just packed with paranormal activity. So of course, there’s always people there, mostly teenagers and paranormal research groups.”

“And someone is having a Halloween party on the spooky road?”

“Yeah. But here’s the thing - a month ago a group of teenagers were on the road after dusk and had an...experience. One girl died.”

“They’re still having this party?”

“Not the people that were there that night, no. But one of the guys had told someone about the idea, and when he backed out of doing it after that night, another group of kids decided they’d go through with it.”

“What happened to the kids that were there that night?”

“According to Garth, one spent a week in the psych ward under suicide watch, saying it was his fault the girl died. He’s still there under observation. The others really aren’t talking to anyone else, but they’re sticking together. Police ruled the girl’s death an accident and the kids got a slap on the wrist for being on the road after posted hours instead of being fined. He said what they’d been through was punishment enough.”

“Surprisingly nice of him. Any of these kids willing to talk?”

Sam buckled his seatbelt. “Only one way to find out.”

 

 **WILDWOOD, MISSOURI**  
**Two days before Halloween**

The motel’s heater/air conditioner hummed loud enough for Sam to get tools from the trunk of the Impala and work on it. Rather than sacrifice the heat for quiet, Dean was happy to let his brother tinker with the system, hoping the lack of noise could let him think.

“Find anything?” Sam asked.

“Yeah. A lot. This place is full of stuff. I don’t know how we never came across it before, honestly.”

“Let’s hear it.”

Dean cleared his throat and sat up in his chair. “Okay. The recently renamed Al Foster Trail, previously Lawler Ford Road, is more popularly known as Zombie Road. The road has had a long and twisted history of paranormal activity and urban legends. From rumors believing there was once a psychiatric facility on the road to railway deaths, shadow creatures who laugh as they move through the woods to a violent old woman living in one of the run down houses at the end of the trail, the stories surrounding the road are endless - none of which help point to the truth.”

“Sounds like a hotbed,” Sam said, turning a screwdriver.

“Yeah but how are we going to weed out what’s actually going on? From what all these sites say, this place was a lover’s lane, a drug den, and everything else until they recently turned it into a hiking and biking trail.” Dean drummed his fingers on the table. “Legit Native American burial grounds, an old mining town, serial killer, ghosts, orbs, shadow beings, druggies, kids playing pranks...that’s a lot for a two mile stretch.”

Sam put the cover back on the heater and popped it into place. “Yeah. Think we need help?”

“What? No.” Dean thought for a moment. “Well it might be great to have back up. Especially when we aren’t sure what we’re up against.” He knocked on the table. “Especially with teenagers.”

Sam smiled. “Jody?”

Dean nodded in agreement. “Jody.” He paused. “And Donna.”

“Would be great to have actual badges there if necessary.”

“Alright. Call ‘em up. See if they’re free.”

 

 **CASTLEWOOD TREATMENT CENTER**  
**ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI**  
**The day before Halloween**

 

Sam and Dean approached the reception desk of the psychiatric treatment facility the police had taken one of the kids to. The floors were clean and the halls quiet. A string quartet melody played softly from a computer, and a heavyset nurse hummed along with the music.

“Excuse me.”

The woman looked up and smiled. “Why hello, gentlemen. What can I do for you today?”

“Good afternoon, Ms….” Sam ducked his head to look at her name tag. “...Jackson.”

“We’re here to see a Tyler Ortiz.” Dean held up his badge. “We’d like to discuss some things with him, if he’s available.”

The nurse turned to look at the clock and picked up the phone on the desk. “Andrea, can you come to the front and watch the desk while I walk some gentlemen to see a patient? Thank you, dear.” She returned the phone to the hook and smiled. “She’ll be just a minute. Whatch’yall looking to get from Tyler? He’s been through a lot, that boy.”

Sam braced his forearms on the counter. “How has he been taking to treatment? Is he making any progress?”

“Oh, yes. I teach a yoga class on Tuesday and Thursday mornings, and he started coming two weeks ago.”

Dean raised his eyebrows. “You...teach yoga?”

Ms. Jackson cocked her head. “Yes, sir. You’d be surprised what a well-tuned body can do.” She looked Dean up and down and then back to Sam. “He’s quiet and was a quick learner. Seems to enjoy the meditation.”

Andrea came around the corner and gave a quick nod and Ms. Jackson stood. “I’ll be back momentarily.” She waved for Sam and Dean to follow her as they started down the hall. “Tyler’s on the first floor, since he’s just working on some stabilization.”

“Stabilization?”

“For PTSD. He was bad off after that girl Emily died. Blamed himself for it, was talking about being possessed - he was a mess. He’s so much better now. Seems at peace.” She stopped at room 148 and knocked. “Tyler? You have visitors.” Turning to the men behind her, she reminded them to be kind, and if they needed anything to press the red button on the wall.

Tyler’s room was full of natural light. The view of the trees in the courtyard and the grassy lawn was a pleasant one, especially for a facility such as this. He had dragged a chair over to the window and opened it the little it would allow to get fresh air and let in the noises from the park. Looking up from a book, his brow furrowed at the sight of two men in suits standing in his doorway.

“I already -”

“We know, Tyler,” Sam said, interrupting. “We want to help you. And your friends.”

Tyler shifted uncomfortably in his chair. “I don’t understand.”

“We heard there’s going to be a party out on the trail you guys were on that night.”

“No,” Tyler asserted, shaking his head. “No, Andrew said there was no way...no, he wasn’t gonna do it. Not after Em.”

“Well someone is,” Dean said sternly. “Someone invited a bunch of kids and they’re going to be there Halloween night. If there’s any specifics you can tell us about what happened that might help -”

“About what you felt, what you saw. Not just the stuff you told police,” Sam added. “Maybe what you told your friends.”

Tyler stared out the window and then looked at the door, as if he’d escape if he could rather than talk to  them about that night. He started with a heavy sigh, almost in defeat yet somewhat in relief. “I didn’t think anyone would believe me.”

Sam glanced at Dean. “We will, Tyler. We’ll believe you if you trust us.”

Tyler recounted the night to Sam and Dean, explaining with earnest all the details of their walk down the road. He told them about his argument with Emily, something petty about the party planning, how he didn’t want to do it, how she thought it would be entertaining to do a seance - that she already had some of the things for the seance set up in the house along the road.

“What things?”

“Uh, I’m not sure. She said she’d painted some symbols on the floor, set up some candles. She did it all a month ahead of time because she thought a little time would give it...natural weathering. Authenticity.”

Dean nodded. “I get that.”

Sam rolled his eyes. “Then what happened?”

“Amber freaked. She saw something and pointed up on the bluff or something. And there were people, she wasn’t crazy. But they weren’t people. I don’t know, man. Shadows. They were just shadows.” Tyler’s face lost its animation. “There were twenty at least. I told them to turn around and go, and then one of the things moved. It was so fast. Amber yelled for everyone to run. She and Nicole took off - they’re on the cross country team and Andrew was with them. Michael and I had packs and tried to drag Emily along with us, so we were slower. We lost the light pretty fast and Emily kept tripping on things as we ran.” Tyler smiled. “She was such a klutz.” He paused for a minute, tugging at a string on the cuff of his sleeve.

“Now the shadows, did they follow you?” Dean asked.

“Yeah. You could hear them. It was like they were all around us and closing in. I could feel my heartbeat pounding in my head. I was so scared.” Tyler’s eyes glassed over, staring at a fixed point on the wall. “Then we hit the bridge. It’s short. Should have got across in six strides. I felt like I hit a wall. I couldn’t move. Everything went black. I heard a scream, Michael vomiting, but otherwise it was just silence.”

Tyler started a barely noticeable rhythmic rocking, his head bobbing subtlely as he stared forward.

Dean nudged Sam’s shoe with is foot and cleared his throat.

“Silence?” Sam prompted. He took a deep breath when Tyler answered.

“It was so loud. Pounding in my ears. Everything was so dark. I couldn’t see anything. Suddenly, the heaviness was gone. I could see. I could move. Michael was on his knees, staring at me. Amber had a flashlight on me. She looked so scared. Michael said Emily was dead. He said I wasn’t me. He swore it wasn’t my fault.”

“It wasn’t your fault,” Sam assured him. “That wasn’t you, Tyler.”

Tyler stared blankly at Sam. “Then what was it?”

* * *

 

 **MCKEERY RESIDENCE**  
**VALLEY PARK, MISSOURI**

 

Sam stood off to the side of an expensive looking decorative welcome mat and pressed the doorbell. A chorus of deep chimes echoed throughout the house. A small dog yapped incessantly on the other side of the door.

Dean rolled his eyes. “Vicious guard dog.”

A man with graying hair opened the door just wide enough to see out, his foot blocking the dog from escaping. “Can I help you gentlemen?”

“Ah, yes, sir,” Dean said, flipping open his badge. “Mr. McKeery? We’re Detectives Page and Young. We were hoping to talk to your daughter, Amber.”

“Did something happen?”

“No, sir. Is she home?”

The man shifted, thinking. The dog kept barking. “I think she’s said enough to the police. She’s out with friends for the first time since the incident, and I think she should be left alone unless there’s a problem.”

Sam raised his eyebrows. “Well, sir, we might have a problem she could help us with. Do you know where she might be?”

Mr. McKeery shrugged. “Wherever teenage kids go,” he said, scooting the dog back with his foot. “If you give me a card I’ll have her call you.”

Sam scribbled a number on the back of a card and gave it to Mr. McKeery. “Please have her call us. It could be urgent.”

Sam and Dean turned as the door shut and locked. They walked back to the car across the street from the house and got in. Sam looked up at the house and saw someone in an upstairs window looking out through the curtain.

“She’s home.”

“I know.”

“Time to call in the big guns.”

 

Dean smacked Sam’s arm as a car pulled up to the house. It was Jody’s. She parked right outside and got out of the car. Donna emerged from the passenger seat, smiling brightly as she made her way up to the porch and rang the doorbell. After a quick chat, badges, and smiles, they were let in the house.

“Bingo.”

“What do we do until they’re done talking with Amber?”

“Head back to the motel. Get some food.”

 

Dean sat on the bed, a pizza box next to him.

“I wish there was something we could do.”

“Nothing to do, Sammy. We talked to Tyler, we have no leads, we’re waiting on Starsky and Hutch to come back with some news, and nothing is going down until tomorrow. So we eat. And watch shitty television. Have you seen this one?” he asked, gesturing with his pizza slice to the TV.

Sam shook his head. “I hate not doing anything.”

“I could get used to it. A taste of retirement. Why don’t you check facebook or something?”

“Shut up.” Sam’s phone rang, and he answered it immediately. “Jody, hey. Yeah, we’re at the Gateway Motel. See you in a few.” He hung up. “They’re on their way.”

 

Sam opened the door to see Donna and Jody leaning on either side with aviators reflecting his smile back at him. Jody smacked her gum and Donna pulled her sunglasses down, looking Sam up and down over the frames.

“Hey guys. Thanks for this,” Sam said. He stepped back to let them into the room.

“No problem, Sam. Glad to help,” Jody said as she scanned the hotel room. “Nice place you got here.” She flicked a piece of ripped green wallpaper.

“Where are you guys staying?” Dean asked, sounding offended.

“Oh we got a room at the Wildwood Hotel. Has a jacuzzi and everything. I even brought my bathing suit,” Donna said, her face lighting up.

Dean faked a smile. “That’s great. What did you get from that Amber girl?”

Jody sat in the chair across from Dean. “‘That Amber girl’ was absolutely traumatized. We got her to open up a bit, but her parents were lurky. And her dog was...barky. She agreed to meet us at the food court at the mall to talk, so we drove there and she actually showed. Brought her friend Nicole along with.”

“Nicole was the other girl there?” Sam asked.

“Yeah. Seemed like sweet girls. They gave us a solid account that agreed with everything in the police report, but added in all the bits about shadow people and the laughing in the woods that they left out for understandable reasons.”

“Sounded real scary,” Donna cut in. “They were real shook up about it. Said it was like, ah, being underwater. Lots of pressure all around them.” Her hands made a bubble around her head. Jody smiled.

Dean bit into the crust of his slice of pizza. “Any way they’ll talk to us?”

“I get the feeling that Amber would. She let it be known her parents were going to be out of town tomorrow. Couldn’t hurt to swing by for a follow up. They also showed us a picture Amber snapped with her cell phone. Have her show you.”

“They say anything about something happening tomorrow night?” Dean asked.

“Yeah, said they heard some kids were going out to the woods to have a party, and that they thought it was a bad idea. And in poor taste, if you ask me,” Jody added. “But what can you do? It’s Halloween. Almost to be expected.”

“Sure,” Sam said, “but someone died a month ago. You’d think that would keep them away.”

“Please, that only draws more of ‘em in,” Dean said, contempt in his tone. “The problem is that they know the cops’ll be there, but they’re gonna do this anyway. What I want to know is how can we get in there to clean up this mess without getting the locals involved.”

“We already handled that,” Donna said.

Sam was taken a little aback. “What? Really?”

Jody grinned. “Yeah. They hate the ‘Zombie Road’ beat on Halloween more than anything. Told the guys at the local station that we were going undercover in the area with some FBI agents checking out a lead on a case we’d been working and appreciated a little leeway, and they said they’d look the other way to give us a couple hours and would be on call in case anything went down. Granted it isn’t a lot of time, but any we can get is better than nothing.”

“What’s our window?”

“Sundown is at six. Everyone avoiding fines should be cleared out by seven, which means that we have from then until nine. After that, they’re coming in to start handing out tickets to trespassers.” Jody crossed her arms, a pleased look crossing her face. “By the way, we’ll need two park employees to accompany us.”

“We have some snazzy tan uniforms for you to wear,” Donna said, smiling brightly. “I read in some magazine that coveralls are making a comeback.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

**HALLOWEEN**

Dean rapped on the door of the McKeery house with his knuckle. Their dog was already barking when they walked up the steps and from the sound of things was now running toward the front door, yapping frantically. Footsteps approached and the door opened in a crack. Amber stuck her face out.

“Are you guys friends with Donna and Jody?” she asked. Her eyes were bloodshot from either crying or lack of sleep, but the dark circles ringing beneath them suggested the latter.

Sam nodded and Dean looked around. Amber picked up her dog who fought her, thrashing as vigorously as its body would let. She left the door open and carried the dog away toward a crate in the living room. Sam and Dean followed her into the house and Sam closed the door behind them.

“Your dog seems to be a little wound up,” Dean commented. “Everything okay?”

Amber closed the dog crate and brushed away the pieces of hair that had fallen into her face. “Everything’s fine.” The barking continued. She looked down at the dog and snapped. “Shut up, Wicket!  _Shut up!_ ” The dog whimpered and retreated to the corner of its crate. She returned to Sam and Dean, her face softening. “I’m sorry. I’m just so tired and he won’t stop barking lately.”

“What kind of dog?” Sam asked.

“Brussels griffon.”

“Cute name.”

“Thanks. Dad’s kind of a  _Star Wars_  fanatic and it was the one condition to getting a small dog - he got to name it.” She gestured for the two to sit. “Jody said you guys wanted to meet with me. I don’t know what else I could help with.”

“Jody said that you had a picture you took before you guys started running. Can we see that?” Sam asked. Amber pulled out her phone and scanned through her pictures until she found it. She handed her phone to Sam. Sure enough, the dark ridge was dotted with what looked like shadows of people. “And you’re sure there were no people there?”

“No one human.”

 

 

  


 

 

 

Sam tilted the screen to Dean so he could see the eerie photograph. “I know it’s a lot to ask, Amber, but there’s supposed to be that party tonight, and we were hoping you could show us where and maybe help get whoever shows up to stop it.”

“You want me to go back there?” Amber scoffed. She looked away and shook her head, but didn’t look resolute in her hesitancy.

Dean gave Sam a knowing look and cleared his throat. “What if I Nicole agreed to come with you?”

“And Andrew,” Amber said abruptly, her eyes locked on Dean. “And Michael. There’s no way Tyler would come, but I want Andrew, Michael, and Nicole to come too.”

“Okay,” Dean said, knocking on the table as if for good luck. “You call ‘em up and tell them to meet us at six-thirty. Maybe together we can get to the bottom of this and keep anyone else from being hurt.”

As they were about to leave, Sam pointed at the detailed amulet sitting on Amber’s chest. “That’s pretty neat. What is that?”

Amber tugged at the coin hanging from the chain. “Oh, I don’t know,” she said with a shrug. “Emily gave it to me.”

Sam nodded and followed Dean down the steps. 

 

When they were both seated in the Impala, he shook his head. “Something’s not right.”

“When is anything right?” Dean asked.

“That amulet around Amber’s neck - I think I’ve seen it before.”

 

Back at the motel, Sam spun his laptop around for Dean to see.

“See? The it’s from the Key of Solomon. It’s called the First Pentacle of the Sun. It says that the face is ‘the Countenance of Shaddaï the Almighty, at whose aspect all creatures obey, and the Angelic Spirits do reverence on bended knees.’”

“That...sounds ominous.”

“I was going to say we should call Cas in on this, but I doubt it’d be a good idea to have him around anything that makes  _Angelic Spirits do reverence on bended knees_.” Dean laughed. Sam did not. “Dean it’s not funny.”

“Oh come on. It’s a little funny. If we do have to call him in, we’ll just keep him away from Amber. Just in case.”

A rush of wind filled the room. Cas stood looking harried - frustrated and as if he were out of breath.

“Cas, you shouldn’t be here,” Sam said.

“Something terrible is happening here.”

“Yeah, Cas. It’s a shady motel. Take your pick of rooms and I’m sure you’ll find something.”

“I’m being serious, Dean.”

“It’s just a bunch of kids and some local lore about shadow people. Nothing to get worked up about.”

Cas shook his head. “No. There’s something else. The air is heavy with it. What is happening here?”

“We’re meeting Donna and Jody and some kids to go break up a party on this old road -”

“I’m coming with you.”

“I think that’s a bad idea, Cas,” Sam asserted, his voice steady. “This girl we’re meeting? She has some talisman, something that has to do with the Key of Solomon and a pentacle or something.”

“That can make her very, very powerful depending on which one it is. If she doesn’t know what it can do, it can be just as dangerous as if she does. It can open doors, in the metaphorical sense.”

“Yeah, we figured that. Doors to where?”

“That’s the problem. Humans possessing this kind of power rarely use it for good. I’m coming with you.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

**AL FOSTER TRAIL**  
**WILDWOOD, MISSOURI**

 

“Do we really need to wear these?” Dean asked, his arms held out, annoyed with his attire. “We look like the Ghostbusters.”

“You two are so spoiled playing FBI.  You’re maintanence crew from the Parks Department,” Jody reminded him. “Back to basics, boys. Suck it up.” She turned to Cas. “Nice to see  _you_.”

Cas smiled. “It’s nice to be seen.”

“Why does he get to wear a suit?” Dean whined.

Jody narrowed her eyes. “Oh, let it go.”

Sam looked at his watch. “Sun’s going down. Do we want to walk ahead or wait for the kids?”

Donna looked back at the road. No other cars had pulled up. “You guys should start walking and we’ll catch up. You might be able to scope it out before we completely lose light if you move quick enough. Take this with,” she said, tossing a bag to Dean. “It’s got extra flashlights, matches, a lighter, salt, ammo, and snacks if you get hungry.”

Sam chuckled to himself. “Thanks Donna. If we don’t see or hear from you within the hour -”

Jody inhaled deeply and gave a thin-lipped fake smile.

“Okie dokie then. Get yer patoots moving, gentlemen. We’ll see you soon.”

Dean took his bag and Sam carried the one Donna had given him, and the two started climbed over the locked gate to the trail, followed by Cas.

The darkness closed in faster than they expected. Sam lingered at the bridge, looking over the edge and wondered aloud to Dean how the short fall could have had such an impact on Emily’s body. The medical examiner said it looked as if she fell from a six story building, not a twenty foot drop. Cas stopped and listened, then continued following them, his eyes wandering through the dense trees. The leaves rustled in odd movements that suggested something moving along the ground in the wood line rather than just the breeze knocking branches, but they kept walking until they saw the house on the left side of the road. Stopping at the curve that looked over to the ridge, Sam bumped Dean.

“That’s where they saw all the shadows.”

The temperature was dropping. With nothing to say, Dean shivered and started down the small path toward the stone house. Crisp leaves crunched beneath his feet, and he could hear Sam and Cas trudging behind. The only unbroken window of the house was thick glass that distorted the view inside. Lifting the latch on the door, Dean pushed it open with no problem.

The air rushed into the room and across the floor. Leaves fluttered in and found their way into corners or brushed along the stone foundation jutting out from the dirt. The dust and leaves settled on the floor after they entered. Despite the age of the house, someone had obviously set up amenities for the party. A keg stood in a bucket of ice in the corner. An old table had a Ouija board laid out with candles on the sides of the game. A bench along the broken out windows on the far side had a backpack and cooler sitting on it. Dean walked over and peered into the backpack.

“Food. Chips, pretzels...junk.” He picked up a bag of chips and opened it.

Sam glared at him. “Really?”

Dean shrugged and popped a couple chips into his mouth.

Cas walked around the main room of the house and into the next, his footsteps light across the floor as he moved, inspecting everything he came across. He found a hutch with a clean white runner, not original to the home. Taking a closer look at the items laid out on the cloth, he called out to Sam and Dean.

“What’s up, Cas?”

“Something is wrong. There’s dust everywhere in this house, but it smells clean. Like -”

“Sage,” Sam finished.

“Yes. And there is no dust here. On this table in particular.”

Dean crumpled up the empty chip bag. “Okay. What does that mean?”

Cas’s fingers drifted over the items on the runner. “Juniper. Oak, cedar, myrtle, hazel. Willow. Laurel. Food and drink spread out on a clean cloth on a clean table….”

Something caught Sam’s eye as his light drifted across the floor. “Look at this.”

The beam of Dean’s light followed where Sam’s had traced. “A protective circle?”

“That’s not a protective circle,” Cas said in a worried tone, turning to face Sam. “It’s a sacrificial circle. This is a sacrifice.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

“Sorry we’re late,” Amber said as she approached Jody and Donna. “It took some convincing to get Andrew and Michael to come.”

The two boys jogged up behind Amber and Nicole. One shoved his hands deep into the pockets of his hoodie, avoiding eye contact. The other nodded and exhaled, watching his breath float up in the moonlight.

“We’re already behind. We need to get moving. Sam and Dean are already down the road with...a friend. Making sure no one is out there yet.”

“Should we stay here? Stop anyone trying to cross the gate?” one of the boys asked.

“What’s your name?” Jody asked.

“Michael.”

“Are you scared of what’s in there?” She nodded toward the woods.

His jaw flexed as he grit his teeth, staring straight at Jody. “I saw what happened. I was there. Tyler’s in psych, Emily’s dead, and you’re seriously giving me shit for not wanting to step foot on that road?”

“No one’s giving you shit,” Jody said, her voice softening. “If you want to stay here and try to turn away anyone making their way down, that’s fine. It probably will be another hour though of you standing here by yourself. Or, you could come with us. Let us know if anything feels familiar.” Michael looked unconvinced. Jody leaned in closer. “We could use your help.”

Amber nudged him. “We can put it on the record. Michael was dragged into the woods against his will,” she teased. “And after this is all over we can go get something to eat.”

“I don’t like this.”

“You’ve come this far,” Nicole said. “We can walk down a damn trail.”

After a minute of internal deliberation, Michael pushed his way past everyone and started walking. He stepped over the gate and kept going, but raised his voice as he drew further away, calling back to them, “You’re not going to let me do this alone, are you?”

Jody and Donna started out after him, their flashlight beams bouncing off the ground. Andrew went over the gate next, then the girls. As they started down the trail following the lead of bouncing light twenty yards ahead of them, Nicole grabbed Amber’s hand.

“Thank you for making us come.”

Amber squeezed Nicole’s hand and whispered, “I just wish Tyler was here.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

“What are you saying, Cas?”

“Whoever set this up in here - these things, this circle - this isn’t children simply having fun. This is deliberate and malevolent.”

“You think these kids were going to sacrifice people?” Dean asked, still not believing it was a possibility.

Sam went around the rooms on the first floor lighting candles, not bothering with trying to climb the rotting steps to the second floor. He situated a few in the windows so Jody and Donna could see when their group made their way toward them. The sound of his boots scuffing the floor stopped abruptly as he reached the window.

“Sam you okay?” Dean asked, moving quickly through the house. Sam stood still as death, staring out at the bluff. “What is it?”

“The shadows.”

Dean looked out the window. Standing across the way were dark shadows looming among the trunks of tall trees. His skin prickled and a shiver ran through him. He was locked, unable to look away from the figures standing dotted on the hillside, almost blending into the trees. Cas pulled his shoulder.

“Dean, lights.”

The beams of flashlights bounced along the path just above the house. Another group of lights flickered through the trees farther back on the trail, just barely visible through the foliage.

“What do we do?” Sam asked. “We can’t just stand here and watch to see if any of them move while Jody and Donna get closer.” By the time he finished his sentence, Dean was gone.

Dean ran up the path and grabbed Jody’s arm, pulling her toward him with Donna following right behind.

“What the hell?” Jody asked.

Michael stopped, making Andrew bump into him. “Who is this guy?”

Dean didn’t bother with introductions. “Run. Don’t look anywhere but straight at the house. Just go.” He waited as each person made their way past him, cautiously as to not trip as they turned down the path but speeding up as soon as they were sure of their footing. Nicole and Amber finally made it to him and he grabbed Amber’s hand, pulling them behind him as he ran toward the house. Once inside, he shut the door and returned to the window. “They still there?”

Sam breathed in deeply, answering in a long exhale. “Yeah. Nothing’s moved.”

Jody met him at the window. “What the fuck are those?”

“Whatever they are, can we make them go away, please?” Nicole begged. “How do we make them leave?”

Dean lit a lantern hanging in the center of the room. “Who was throwing this party, anyway?”

Andrew and Michael looked at each other and shook their heads.

“Someone at school? Someone you know? Some asshole who thinks this party will make him cool?” Dean prodded.

“Who else knew about this?” Sam asked, his eyes not leaving the ridge.

“No one,” Andrew swore.

Dean leaned over to Sam and whispered, “Where’s Cas?”

“The other room,” he answered. “He’s trying to make out what the purpose of the sacrifice would be, hoping maybe we could stop it.”

Dean turned back to the others. “Well if it wasn’t anyone from school, maybe it was one of you guys drawing people down here with a promise of beer and a scary party.” The kids looked at each other. Dean crossed the room, looking at their faces for any sign of guilt. “See, it would take a lot to get a keg down here, but -” he rapped on the keg “- if it’s empty…? Still a pain in the ass, but not nearly as difficult.”

“You think one of us is throwing the party? Who gives a shit?” Michael yelled. “Those  _things_  are outside!”

“And one of you are controlling them!” Dean shouted. He looked at Amber, her hand clasped to the pendant under her sweater. “Where’d you get that necklace, Amber?”

“I told you,” Amber said, her voice wavering. “My grandmother gave it to me.”

“I thought Emily gave it to you,” Sam said, turning from the window.

Amber stared at Dean. The same chill that had run through him when he saw the shadows in the trees rolled over his body, his hair raised. Everything went quiet.

“Amber, what’s going on?” Nicole asked.

“Did you do this?” Michael said, grabbing her arm.

Amber’s mouth opened and she screamed, inhumanly long, a smile creeping into the corners of her mouth. Then there was silence. Michael’s body flew back against the wall, knocking over candles from a window sill. Andrew and Jody rushed to his side. The leaves on the floor flicked with flames from the candles that rolled on the floor, glowing with embers. In the low light that filled the room, Dean could see the smile playing in the corners of Amber’s mouth.

“You killed Emily, didn’t you?” he asked accusingly. His mouth quirked into a knowing grin, his eyes glaring at her in the candlelight. “She was a sacrifice.”

Nicole’s hand reached for Amber’s, but then retracted. “Amber, what is he talking about?”

“We’re all sacrifices. Amber here was going to sacrifice all of us.”

The silence thumped in their ears along with their heartbeats as they waited for sound, for a cricket, for a gust of wind. Nothing natural came. The stillness consumed them. Suddenly, Sam noticed something different.

“Dean -”

Laughter came from outside. The shadows surrounded them on all sides. Blackness blotted out any moonlight cast through the windows. They ran around the outside of the house, laughing and knocking on the walls, the door, the window. Then the laughter stopped. Dean swore he saw something out of the corner of his eye in the shadows. Jody and Donna looked around too, unsure if their eyes were playing tricks on them or if something truly was there.

“Stop with the parlor tricks. We get it. You can control the poor souls living on this road. What next?” Dean nodded to the Ouija board. “You gonna call up my friend Charlie, ask her when my birthday is?”

“Seven is an awfully nice number,” Amber said, ignoring him. “If only Tyler could be here, I wouldn’t have to do this alone. But I guess you’ll have to take his place,” she said, looking at Nicole.

Nicole had tears rolling down her face. “You...you killed Emily.”

“She was a virgin, surprisingly. And now I have this one,” she said, looking down at herself. “Not very powerful right now, but she works. And thanks to you all, my friends will have theirs too.” Amber’s head dropped and she began chanting under her breath. The floor rumbled. Seconds later, unearthly, baleful screams rang out from beings unable to enter the home. Everyone covered their ears.

“What are your friends, banshees?” Jody yelled over the noise.

Amber’s eyes turned to Dean, looking angry. “What did you do?”

Dean smiled. “I didn’t do anything, sister. Friend of mine did though.”

Cas came in from the next room. “The house is protected. The circle is destroyed.” He looked at Amber and cocked his head to the side curiously. She returned the look, as if they had met in passing before. “I’ll take care of them,” Cas said, breaking her gaze. She was about to reach for the pendant chain inside her sweater when Nicole snatched the amulet from Amber’s neck.

“Give that back!” she screeched. “You wouldn’t know what to do with it!”

Donna tossed Cas the salt and he lined the doorway before crossing the threshold and shut the door behind him. A bright light flashed. Then another. The smiting of demons surrounded them, a lighting storm on the other side of the door.

“We’ve got to help him,” Jody said, heading for the door.

Sam stopped her. “They have no meatsuits. Plus, he can handle it.”  

“More will come. It’s already started,” Amber warned, a hysterical laugh brewing in her throat. “And your angel friends will be of no help.” Amber suddenly lunged at Nicole to steal the amulet back when the empty keg flew through the air and hit her, knocking her out.

Everyone turned to see Donna standing across from Amber, a satisfied smile on her face. “What? Been to my share of parties. Was always on clean up detail. Glad that was finally useful.”

 

Amber came to sitting in the center of the circle, tied to a chair.

“How original,” she muttered. “Tying me up can’t stop it.” She leaned her head forward and whispered, “It’s coming.”

“What’s coming?” Sam asked.

“Wouldn’t you love to know.” She looked between Sam and Dean, her eyes flitting to black. “With all the two of you had been through, you’re not prepared for what we have descending upon you.”

“Caeli Deus, Deus terrae, Humiliter majestati gloriae tuae supplicamus,” Nicole said, stepping up to the edge of the circle.

“You worthless  _bitch_. All you had to do was stand by her side.  _We even had seven!”_  she bellowed.

Nicole ignored the voice coming from Amber. “Exorcizamus omnis infernalium spirituum potestate, deceptione nequitia, Omnis fallaciae, libera nos, domius.”

Sam and Dean looked at each other, watching in awe as Nicole spouted the rite, reading it off her phone.

“Exorcizamus omnis immundus spiritus.”

“You can’t! You couldn’t do it to her. You couldn’t! She wanted this! For both of you!”

“Omnis satanica potestas, omnis incursio, Infernalis adversarii, omnis legio.”

The real Amber opened her mouth to scream, but something unholy roared out of her.

Nicole tightened her grip on the amulet. “Omnis and congregatio secta diabolica. Ab insidiis diaboli, libera nos.”

“No!” the demon screamed, then erupted into laughter. “I’ll be back! And I’ll bring more!”

Jody and Donna looked at each other, and then to the boys.

“Benedictus Deus, Gloria Patri, Audi nos!”

The black smoke billowed out of Amber, and she slumped over.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

“Well that was horrifying,” Jody said after Michael got out of the car. They watched him walk up the steps to his house. Andrew was already at home. Nicole and Amber were leaned up against each other, asleep in the back.

“What’s that poor girl going to do?” Donna asked, looking at them fondly.

Jody peeked at them in the rear view mirror while she waited for Trick or Treaters to cross the road. “I have no idea.”

“Do you think they’ll be okay?”

“Not at all,” Jody answered, pulling out onto the road.

After they dropped off the girls at Amber’s house, Donna and Jody met Sam, Dean, and Cas at Waffle House for coffee. When they arrived, the boys already had ordered food and stacks of waffles sat on the side of the booth where Cas sat looking out the window.

“Thanks, boys! Ooh, what’d I get to drink?” Donna took a sip. She melted into the booth. “A Coke with real honest to God vanilla?” she practically squeaked. “I love you boys.”

“What are you guys doing after this?” Jody asked.

“Hopefully sleeping,” Sam said. “But after that...demon...or whatever it was said?”

“We’ve got nothing to go off of Sam. Maybe you’d be less stressed if you had something decent to eat,” Dean said, poking his fork at the egg white omelette on Sam’s plate. “Sure it’s healthy, but at what cost?” He stabbed another piece of waffle and stuffed it into his mouth. “Any ideas, Cas? Something to ease Sam’s mind?”

Cas didn’t move. He stared out the window, watching people walk by in costumes. “It’s funny. You dress up like the things that scare you most, or the things you’re too afraid to be. You try to scare people or scare yourselves by watching movies or going to haunted houses. I don’t see the point. Especially when the rest of the year you pretend to not see the shadows lurking just out of view, the ones you see out of the corner of your eye.” Everyone looked at each other, not knowing what to say, or admit they saw them too. Cas broke his hypnotic gaze and returned his attention to the table with a weak smile. “I don’t know anything about what she said regarding coming back and bringing more, but I’ll look into it. I’m sure we’ll find out soon.”

“I don’t know if I want to find out,” Jody said, taking a bite of her food.

“Oh, you’d rather be surprised, like with the Leviathan?” Sam asked.

Jody shook her head. “Nope. Nevermind. Please fill me in on whatever monster has doomed the earth.  Legion of demons, a shadow army, clowns, Donald Trump...at least I’ll be prepared.”

Sam smiled. “That sounds horrific.”

“Which part?” she asked.

“All of it.”

“Or we could spend all our money on a vacation.” Donna suggested, sipping innocently on her straw.

“I like your plan better.” Jody raised her fork with waffle up and cheers’d it with Donna’s.

“So what are you two doing after this?” Dean asked.

Donna looked at Jody. “Jacuzzi?”

Jody nodded. “Jacuzzi.”

Dean looked like a sad puppy. “I...I want a hot tub.”

“Oh for geez you big baby,” Donna said, exasperated. “You three can come over to our hotel if you want.”

“I guess,” Jody offered, rolling her eyes. “It would be terrible having to see you in swim trunks.”

“I’m afraid I don’t have any swim trunks,” Cas said.

Jody laughed. “We’ll figure something out for you, big boy.” She took another bite of her waffle and ignored the shadow moving behind Donna. “Oh, Amber asked me to give you this,” she said, fishing a note out of her pocket. “She wrote it down in the backseat before we dropped everyone off and said to thank you guys for her.” Jody slid a folded piece of paper to Sam.

He opened it. His eyes crossed over the words quickly and then again, slower the second time, trying to absorb the meaning of the note. He sat up straight. His nostrils flared and sweat beaded up on his forehead. He tried not to take notice of the movement he saw out of the corner of his eyes as he slid the note to Dean.

 

 

> _Matthew 12:43-45_
> 
> _“When an impure spirit comes out of a person, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. Then it says, ‘I will return to the house I left.’ When it arrives, it finds the house unoccupied, swept clean and put in order. Then it goes and takes with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that person is worse than the first. That is how it will be with this wicked generation.”_
> 
> _Watch out for the shadows, Sam.  
>  They’re waiting._

 

 

 

  


 

 

 

 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

 

The dog continued to follow Amber and Nicole around the house, barking incessantly as they dished out ice cream in the kitchen.

“I feel like shit,” Amber said, sliding onto a stool. “I don’t want to yell at him anymore or put him back in the cage, but he’s driving me crazy.”

“I’m sorry all this happened.”

“You still have that talisman?” Amber asked, digging her spoon into her ice cream.

“Yeah, of course. Leaving something like that laying around could be dangerous.”

“Good. Can I see it?” Amber asked, ignoring the second part of Nicole’s statement.

Nicole set her spoon down into her bowl. “Why would you want it right now? You should probably rest. We messed up enough. I don’t know what happened to you, or to Emily - and I don’t need to know, but I don’t think we should be messing around with that anymore.”

Amber’s face relaxed. “You’re right. It’s stupid.” They sat pretending to eat their ice cream, listening to the dog barking. “I can’t take it anymore. I’ll be right back.” Amber stood up and pushed in her chair. Scooping up Wicket, she carried him across the house and slipped her hand into Nicole’s purse as she passed by the entry, taking the amulet from her bag’s cell phone pocket, and continued upstairs into her parent’s bedroom. She smiled to herself. “Predictable as ever.”

Amber opened the doors to her parent’s bedroom and closed them behind her. She walked into the bathroom, Wicket’s barks echoing against the floor and walls. With one swift movement, she snapped his neck. Holding his lifeless body in her arm, she walked over to the garden tub where her mother and father’s bodies lie, adding him to the pile. She held the amulet in her hand and cupped it, whispering to it.

A quivering voice came from behind her. “What are you?”

Amber slowly turned around with a smile. “I guess you could say, a second coming.”

  
  
  
  



End file.
